Scimago Journal & Country Rank is a free analytical tool that allows you to check the quartile of a journal in Scopus.
The service automatically calculates the SJR and assigns the journal to a specific quartile (Q1–Q4) so that you don't have to manually calculate the percentile.
Scimago updates data once a year — usually in April or May.
This is confirmed by the developers of Scimago Journal & Country Rank (SJR) themselves and is observed annually:
▪️ During this period, SJR indicators for the previous calendar year are updated.
▪️ New journals included in Scopus are added during the year.
▪️ Quartile indicators (Q1–Q4) for all journals are listed.
Example:
In May 2024, data for 2023 were published.
That is, if it is May 2025, we are working with data for 2024.
For the entire year after the update, Scimago shows the same quartile data until the next update.
⚠️ Important:
Since the quartile in Scimago is only updated once a year, the data may become outdated. For example:
▪️ Scimago still has the magazine in Q4 (according to 2023 data)
▪️ And in Scopus, according to CiteScore, it is already in Q2 (according to data for 2024)
Risk: You may underestimate a quality journal or, conversely, choose a weak publication due to outdated information.
How to use Scimago - step-by-step instructions
Step 1. Go to the website
First of all, it is important to log in through the official website:
👉 https://www.scimagojr.com
Step 2: Select the Journal Rankings tab
Step 3: There you can sort the logs:
- By category (field of knowledge);
- By country;
- By year;
Step 4: By quartile (Q1–Q4), SJR indicator — by clicking on the column header, you can sort from Q1 to Q4 and vice versa.
You can also view magazine statistics by country.
!!! this is an interesting analytical tool:
Step 1. Go to the Country Rankings tab
Step 2: For example, let's choose Germany from 1996 to 2024:
As you can see in the screenshot, here you can see the country's full statistics for H-index, number of documents, number of citations and number of citations per document:
Step 3: You can also select the industry you need and view the full country statistics for the selected industry:
Step 4: You can also view journals by quartile (Q1–Q4), SJR indicator - by clicking on DEU in SCImago Institutions Rankings:
Here you will find all the magazines in the country with the quartile, industry icon, and title shown:
The next step is to go to the journal card
For example, let's choose a magazine Nature Reviews Clinical Oncology.
There will be detailed information:
- In what directions is it indexed?
- Country;
- Quartile;
- Publishing house;
- ISSN;
- What years does it cover?
- Publishing house website;
💡 Note: If there is no link to the publisher's website, it is worth checking the magazine further!
- SJR change schedule by year:
- The most useful are the comments!
At the bottom of the journal page there is a section with user reviews. This is often where they warn if the journal is of poor quality, has indexing problems, or is suspected of fraud.
Results:
Scimago is a convenient and visual tool for quickly checking journals included in the Scopus database. Its main advantage is automatic quartile determination (Q1–Q4) and open access to the database with filters by country, industry, and metrics.
However, it is important to clearly understand its limitations:
Scimago updates data only once a year — in April or May, and displays the status of the journal for the previous calendar year. Information is not updated during the year.
This means that the quartile data displayed may already be outdated, especially if the journal has recently improved or lost its position in Scopus.
In countries where percentile or current CiteScore are taken into account for certification, relying solely on Scimago is risky.
You may mistakenly underestimate or overestimate a journal—and lose time, money, or even publication recognition when defending your dissertation.
Use Scimago as a starting point for analysis:
to search for journals by field,
to check general metrics,
to assess the dynamics of previous years,
to filter out questionable publications without a website or with negative reviews.
But the final decision should be made based on current Scopus metrics — CiteScore, percentile, and indexing date.
If you want to publish an article in Scopus (Q1–Q4), we will help you do it officially and with a guarantee of results.
We will select a magazine that fits your topic, deadlines, and requirements.
Let's check the indexing, percentile, country and publisher
We work only with proven publications
We will provide support for full indexation
We conclude an official contract
We have been working since 2021 and have already helped more than 3,000 researchers from Ukraine, Kazakhstan, Azerbaijan, and EU countries. Leave a request — and get an individual consultation and a free estimate of the timing and cost of publication.
